Chromebooks are delightfully robust machines. Things rarely go wrong, and they can take a real hammering before they eventually give up the ghost. It puts them in stark contrast to most Windows laptops and Macs.

And because Chromebooks are so cheap, it’s not the end of the world if your laptop does go to the graveyard in the sky — you can get a new one for little more than $200.

However, don’t throw away your device just yet. It might still be salvageable. You just need to identify your problem and follow a few basic troubleshooting steps.

Here are seven of the most common Chromebook errors, along with a few tips on how to resolve them. Keep reading to find out more.

1. Chromebook Frequently Crashes or Freezes

If you think that just one tab is causing the issue, press Ctrl + Shift + R to hard refresh the page. If the problem returns, enter Chrome’s menu by clicking the three vertical dots in the upper right-hand corner, then navigate to More Tools > Task Manager, select the tab causing problems, and click on End Process.

On the other hand, if your Chromebook always crashes or freezes, and it doesn’t seem to be caused by one particular web page, the first thing you should do is turn the device off and on again.

If the problem persists, it’s almost certainly the result of a rogue app or extension. Firstly, try closing all your browser and app windows. Open the app launcher and uninstall any recently installed apps or extensions (right-click > Remove from Chrome).

For a more nuanced way of locating a rogue extension, go to Settings > More Tools > Extensions, and unmark every checkbox. Re-enable the extensions one by one until you find the one causing the issues.

If your machine keeps crashing, you might need to reset your device. More on that at the end of the article.

2. Laggy Online Performance

Laggy online performance is usually a symptom of your laptop’s age rather than a fundamental problem that can be fixed.

Speaking from personal experience, my Chromebook with 2GB of RAM is now approaching its fourth birthday, and it’s starting to struggle. The problem is particularly noticeable when using an app like TweetDeck which consumes a lot of power.

Bottom line: The only solution is to do fewer things on your computer at the same time.

3. Laggy General Performance

If you find your Chromebook lags even when you’re not doing anything online (e.g. when you’re using the calculator or watching a locally-saved video), it could be a sign that you need to update your machine.

Google is constantly releasing new versions of the operating system. They will automatically install themselves whenever you restart your computer, but if you’re the kind of person who leaves your computer running 24/7, you could be a few updates behind.

Check if there’s a small arrow in the bottom right-hand corner of the display. If there is, you have updates to install.

Worse still, it’s not always immediately obvious how to change the setting. You have two options. You can either go to Profile > Settings > Device > Displays and make the appropriate changes, or click on the second screen notification message and make the adjustments there.

You can also change resolution, rotate the image, and center your screen in this menu.

5. Unknown File Type Error Message

Chromebooks don’t support the same number of file types as Windows and Macs.

Firstly, establish whether your Chromebook is charging. If it is, let it charge for 30 minutes before attempting to turn it on. If it still doesn’t fire up, you might need to reinstall the operating system. More on that in a moment.

If there’s no power going into your laptop, unplug everything and remove the battery from your device. Then, with the power cord and the battery detached, hold the Power button down for 30 seconds. Finally, put everything back together and charge the computer for 30 minutes.

7. Chrome OS Is Missing or Damaged

This is the most dreaded message in the world of Chrome OS: you’ll need to reinstall your entire operating system.

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Ocean-Mist Starratt

May 3, 2019 at 10:49 pm

When trying to play music files on chrome so play rate away and then other will not play at all, and its not because of bad files. It never did this before and I've used every search engine to find an anwser. I dont know what to do :(

I have Chromebook that I get from my Universty (for some amount of time) and those ones have display problem, part of screen will disappear, go blank, editing in google docs became impossible, wall of text can disappear, then after enter they appear again until next key pressed, presentations in google pres quirks similar, browsing internet also behaves this way.

In my family of 8 everyone has a Chromebook. Some are newer some are older and purchased refurbished or used. I have never had any of these issues. They just work. Only time my chromebook has ever crashed in 2 years is when I tried to due 3D design which overloaded the memory. 8 machines over 2 years. No viruses or malware. Best experience I have every had with any computing product.

Dan is a British expat living in Mexico. He is currently a Senior Writer for MakeUseOf. At various times, he has been the Social Editor, Creative Editor, and Finance Editor. He is also an Editor for MUO's sister site, Blocks Decoded. Prior to his writing career, he was a Financial Consultant. You can follow him on Twitter and Facebook.